Hard work nets donation to foundation

SCOTT SNELL

Published 7:00 pm, Tuesday, August 2, 2005

The Clear Lake High School baseball program held its annual 100 inning game baseball service project last February in which the varsity, junior varsity, and freshmen teams arise early and play 33 and one third innings of baseball while the fans sponsor their chosen players.

The Falcon booster club incorporated the service project aspect to the program in 2005 with a two-fold objective in mind: 1) to raise funds for the program, and 2) to additionally donate a portion of the proceeds to the Perwinkle Foundation charity.

Working in conjunction with Texas Children's hospital, the Perwinkle Foundation was established to provide a week- long camp to children with life threatening diseases to attend free of charge.

"The service project was designed to get our young men more involved with raising funds for the team while at the same time contributing to a very worthwhile cause," Clear Lake booster club Vice President Tony Zertuche said.

Zertuche added, "The young men spent weekends in December and January handing out flyers at spring little league registrations advertising their minicamp. The commitment to making this program successful was seen in their dedication in working with each camper. Over 50 little league players signed up to have the opportunity to be coached by our boys, and pledges in the amount of $6000.00 were raised to support the 100 inning game. Carrabbas' restaurant donated and served over 300 meals towards our service project."

The camp cost was $25.00, which allowed the campers to receive a T-shirt, meal, and two hours of instruction on baseball.

The instruction was given by high school coaches and the Clear Lake players who took the campers- ranging in age from 6 to 12- off in groups to work on their skills.

Outgoing baseball booster club President Cyndi Dinges, whose son Christopher has volunteered as a camp counselor for the past two years, said, "As a parent, it was quite a site to see this happen. Everyone involved had a great time. It was also very special to see 25 percent of the proceeds being donated to the Perwinkle Foundation."

Dinges added, "The program raised $2500.00 for the foundation, which allowed four children the opportunity to attend camp. The kids all worked together as a team, and gave back to the school. This was really great to see. We had a total of 65 campers this year, and hope to see this number grow every year. This was the first year of many more successful ones to come. What I have enjoyed the most about being part of the board for the past three years has been watching these boys coming in as freshmen and seeing them graduate as men. It is also a great feeling knowing that you left this program in a better place than when you started."